Help pick a chef's knife

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I wasn't quite sure where to post this- mods move as you see fit (or delete it altogether- no hard feelings). There are a lot of knowledgable knife folks in here though, and this forum seems to be the haunt. A chef knife could surely be used as a weapon, but for this discussion I'd rather stick to veggies and already dead meat.


I'd like to the lady a chef's knife for Christmas, with a budget <$300. I'd really like for it to be from a custom knife maker, though obviously with my time frame it would have to be an in stock item and not truly custom for her. She appreciates art and handmade pieces as much as I do, and I'd rather support a small shop than Henckels et al. I might could get it laser etched locally if I came up with something clever to put on there .

I love the look of damascus, but she'd accuse me of buying it for myself if I went that route . Ease of sharpening is not a huge consideration because at this price point we'd likely get it sharpened professionally locally. I'm thinking of a blade length of ~8 inches, no less than 7.

Here's a link to the top contender right now: http://fowlerblades.com/web/?page_id=70 the second one with the lovely cocobolo handle. He is local-ish to me which is a plus.

There are just so many knifemakers out there I thought I'd ask for some suggestions.
 
I bought a 8" Shun Chef’s knife and a Shun Santu from SMKW. This is a great knife. Excellent design and materials, takes one heck of an edge. Thin blade, slices cleanly.

5287.jpg

http://www.cutleryandmore.com/shun-classic/chefs-knife-p15287

I have purchased a number of Maruyoshi knives from World knifes. I am just impressed with the little details these Japanese knives have and the great edge I get with these blades.

http://www.worldknives.com/manufacturers.php?i=82

Basically I think Japanese kitchen knives are great. They are not Cheap either.

8" is a good size. I have a longer, maybe 12" Chef's knife. Use that mostly on bread.


I expect people are going to yell at me, but for $18.00 I like the Cold Steel Chef’s knife. It is “only” 420HC, but it is properly tempered, so it takes an excellent edge, and it is easy to resharpen. Just a couple of strokes and you are back in business. There is something to be said about ease of sharpening. Not everyone in the world has all those stones and diamond hones. In fact, it used to be that your average housewife sticks a knife in the back of the can opener and uses

http://www.eknifeworks.com/webapp/e...Classics&#153;+Chef&#146;s+Knife/CS59KCZ.html
 
Custom kitchen knives require a special diligence to maintain them. Especially a good wood handle ones. We have custom wood handle knives in our kitchen. They will get dropped in water over night and accidentally get put in the dishwasher, if people beside you or your wife load the dishwasher.
When I make a custom kitchen knife now it has g10 handle and CPM 154 blade.

Now if I wanted a good knife off the shelf one is choice is Shun "Ken Onion" series. Ken Onion is a Knifemaker's Hall of Famer and You also have Chris Reeve's Kitchen Knives. Both of these are the best of the best.

Your going to be hard pressed to find a custom maker that is not up to his elbows in orders. Steve Fowler is an excellent maker and 52100 is a wonderful steel. I would call him first thing in morning make sure he has them. They won't last the week.
 
SlamFire1 said:
I expect people are going to yell at me, but for $18.00 I like the Cold Steel Chef’s knife. It is “only” 420HC, but it is properly tempered, so it takes an excellent edge, and it is easy to resharpen. Just a couple of strokes and you are back in business. There is something to be said about ease of sharpening. Not everyone in the world has all those stones and diamond hones. In fact, it used to be that your average housewife sticks a knife in the back of the can opener and uses
Click to expand...

Excellent choice with the Ken Onion

Never yell at you. But there is difference in high and low end knife. Super steels will hold a sharper edge at Sharpening, so there is sharper edge to start with. Now add that to even better edge retention. You really can tell the difference in the very first cut. I can tell the difference in my ATS 34, Damascus and my CPM 154 Ti folders. Same knife but all three cut different.

I don't even have a stone or a steel in our kitchen. Mainly because we just don't sharpen knives that often. I sharpened my wife's knife once in a year it still slice a tomato paper thin slice. I sharpen mine twice in a year.
 
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The Wusthof Grand Prix is a great knife, IMO. I've used Ken Onions quite a bit and they are awesome, but I wouldn't give away my Grand Prix to get one. I prefer the grip/blade interface on the Grand Prix.
 
The Wushof's look interesting , but they don't specify what steel they are made from , other than " Forged from one piece of especially tempered high carbon steel to ensure an outstanding endurance. "

I would second the SHUN series. Haven't handled the Reeves Kitchen knives , but Chris never does anything 1/2 way , so you can rest assured they are worth the money.
 
At the price you are looking at, why not consider a good ceramic blade? They hold their edge a long time and can be made razor sharp. Of course, I am not sure that there is any custom maker, but it is worth a look at if interested.
 
Stephen is a member here and posts from time to time so you've picked from a "brother".

If Stephen doesn't have anything in your price range I'd recommend looking for an article that was in Blade Magazine (or Knives Illustrated) in the past couple of years that rated kitchen knives from manufacturers. Various professional chefs did the evaluations.

As Jim said, custom kitchen knives with wooden handles (or any wooden handled knife) shouldn't be put in a dishwasher or left in water.

Ceramic chef knives aren't to my liking because of edge chipping issues. Great paring knives, though. And, no, no custom makers work in ceramic that I'm aware of, but that's no surprise considering that the blades not ground.
 
I'll also recommend the Shun. With a budget of less than $300, you can get her two--the chef and the sant. They're made by the same company that does Kershaw, so use that for what it's worth. A really nice knife for a lot less than the fancier ones.
 
Fowler makes good stuff.

Dan Koster also makes custom kitchen knives, but I don't know if he has anything in stock.

My buddy Andy Roy makes beautifully handled and sharpened knives. You could drop him an email at andy(at)fiddlebackforge.com, to see if he's got anything that will work for you. :)
 
I'm going to give another vote for the shun knife if you want to keep in budget. that said, check out the chris reeves kitchen ware thats coming out soon. I was in his shop not too long ago and I've handled the kitchen knifes he made and all I can say is wow.
 
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Thanks for the responses guys. You've definitely given me some leads to chase down.
If there's a maker out there that has something in stock he thinks I'd like but doesn't want to toot his own horn, feel free to shoot me a PM.

Keep the ideas coming- I'll close the thread when I pick something.

ETA: Fowler's knives have both already sold. A day late and a dollar short.
 
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The top of the line stamped steel knives are R.H. Forschner, also branded as Victorinox. They are very good, but way under your price target. The next step up is F.Dick brand. They look like Forschners but are forged steel instead of stamped. Also way under your price target, so I don't know if this helps much.
 
Lots of good brands mentioned. For myself, I got an 10" Wusthoff Classic chefs knife, and I was happy enough with it that I got my Mom the 8" version for Christmas a few years ago. With a butcher's steel and a diamond hone, it's easy to keep sharp.
 
Check out the Chef's Choice brand.
Well researched, well made,dishwasher safe and priced right.
I really like the Santoku blade geometry for kitchen work.
 
Zeke/PA said:
Check out the Chef's Choice brand.
Well researched, well made,dishwasher safe and priced right.
I really like the Santoku blade geometry for kitchen work.
Click to expand...
It's generally not a good idea to run a fine, high-carbon steel knife through the dishwasher. Or to keep it stuck in a drawer with a lot of other knives to bang against. I wash and dry my chefs' knives after use, and hang them on a magnetic holder on the kitchen wall.
 
No one's asked, but does she actually want a knife?
Click to expand...

:neener: Fair enough hso. But yes, she does want a new knife (knives) but would kick my butt if she knew I spent $300 on one.

I went out today to handle several of the suggestions. I was high on the Ken Onion Shun from reviews, but the ergonomics were "particular" enough I was afraid she wouldn't find it comfortable. I hemmed and hawed and wasted a bunch of the salesman's time, but handled lots of knives between a couple of shops. I ended up with a Shun Santoku 7 1/2-inch. It was on sale and I was OTD for $85, way less than my $300 limit :). I didn't consult with her at all on this, so I hope she likes it. It won't break my heart if she wants to trade it for something else though. Heck, I really hope I like it too for that matter.

Anyway, thanks for all the thoughts and advise guys. I'll leave the thread open since it seems like a decent source of info from some informed folks about an item most all of us will buy at least one of some time or another. Mods feel free to close/detroy at will.

ETA: No worries about the care and feeding of the knife. We will take good care of it.
 
If I could only have one kitchen knife it would be a santoku, and actually is about the one I use 90% of the time).

BTW, make sure to interview the sharpener you're going to use so that you're assured that he's not some hack that will burn the temper out of your knife with power tools. Professionals use belts and wheels, but finish with stones.
 
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